Yarn feeding device



R. H. LAWSON ET AL March 1, 1938.

,YARN FEEDING DEVICE Filed Aug. 14, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet l Ava/57ml414/1153 March 1, 1938. 3. H. LAWSON ET AL 2,109,863

YARN FEEDING DEVICE Filed Aug. 14, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 [WE/V7025.-203527154 LA W-S'dA j 1 1 71; LIAM Z. JMJT Z'R, Aycus'rzzv 61462615:

atented Mar, t, 1938 YARN FEEDING DEVICE Robert H. Lawson and William L.Smith, In, Pawtucket, and Augustin Gagn, Central Falls, R. I., assignorsto Hemphill Company, Central Falls, R. I., a corporation ofMassachusetts Application August 14, 1936, Serial No. 96,060

In Canada February 18, 1936 10 Claims.

The invention herein described concerns s called positive feedingdevices for textile machines, more especially knitting machines ofsimilar type to that claimed in applicants co-pending ency towardover-running. This over-running creates a temporary condition of slackyarn which has an efiect on thefabric knitted, such overrunning beingone of the difficulties which we 5 United States applications Ser. Nos.14,492, 56,363, overeeme y the p s t ve eed ng means herein 5 and73,326, and this case is a continuation as to descrlbedall commonsubject matter of those co-pending The m 1S pped ou the positively casesAmong the purpo es of the invention are tated feeding element and. alsoabout another the positive f di g of a yam from the sourcefreelyrotatable member which is to be driven by of supply under aminimum f tension and com the yarn itself. It is a furthercharacteristic of trolling this feeding in such a manner that fluctheinvehtien that Said y rn must be wrapped tuations in resistance offeredto the drawings of t th s second or driven deme t, some turns the yarnwill be eliminated to as great an extent m e dllectloh 9 drive theelement and other as possible, and further to provide automatic turns inthe opposite direction to resist the movecompensation of the feeding toprevent over-runment of the element to h v a drag created ning This isparticularly applicable to cases thereon by the adverse contact withsaid elewherein the yarn is being fed at varying and rapment- H idly flutuati speeds Now referring to Figs. 1-3 a spindle I having In drawings;thereon a series of pins or wires 2 held in place Fig. 1 is a sectionalview illustrating the inby (uses 3 e 4 fixed t0 the p le comprise a 0 tias t would be applied to n- 4 a yarn engaging and feeding roller orelement about knitting machine; wh ch a yarn 5 has been wrapped severaltimes.

is a plan showing one positive feedi This spindle passes throughbearings in a sleeve mechanism as een from the end thereof; 0r indicatedgenerally at 6 and. is driv- Fig. 3 is a section taken about mid-way ofone en by g of Pinion 7 engaging the teeth of a 25 of e f di elements;master driving gear 8. It is to be understood that F1gs 4 and 5 Showelevations f a yam several other siimlar feeding devices are to be m cwhich is employed to keep separate he spaced about themachme and wouldbe driven by contolutions of yarn which pass about each rosaid gear 3 eInserted 111 a eeslng ade up of hating fe ding element; v annularportion 9, base I!) and cover ll. These 30 Fig. 6 is an elevationillustrating a modified Parts a e descrlbedm detail in the mendform of iti n s pplications above mentioned so that no fur- Figs. 7 and 8 areplan views'of the same showthe! descnptlol} 1s necessary i ing amovable, driven, braking rollerin active and A flange 15 ffmned es eIntegral p rt Of inactive posimm bushing 6 and retains the entireassembly in po- 35 The positive feedingdevice herein described Simon bys e D D but procomprises a driven, yarn feeding ele t about vides forquickly detaching the entire unit when which the yarn to be fed ispassed several times necessary- At the lower end of flange I! we have sothat said yarn is frictionally advanced by the attached an angular h ehevmg a Its ow- 40 rotating element. As was characteristic of the er ende111? eenymg PIVOt pon which the 40 copendmg applications abovementioned by spindle i1 is free to rotate, this spindle also ropllcant,the yarn feeding element is driven t tates in a hearing it formed in astud l8 respeed in' excess of that required to feed the yarn tamed in anextenslen fixed t0 the upper end if no slippage were contemplated.However, debracket Braeket also has a comb genpending upon the amount ofresistance offered at any indicated by numeral 29 and having 45 thesupply and upon the rate at which the driven yarn is to be consumed,this driving or rotating element about which the yarn is snubbed orwrapped will engage that yarn and feed it with a amount of tractlveefiort whi h 111 b govdescribed lngreater detail in one of the para- 50erned automatically to suit the occasion. With graphs e wi someparticular types of yarn and especially while -p e 2| Pivots en Stud land as an arm consuming the yarn at varying rates, for exam-. n i ns O't e ub 22 and threaded extension pie, knitting pattern work such asknitting and' 23 attached h reto. A-wlre 24 extends down from the hub 22in close proximity so spindle I! 5b floating, there has been found to besome tendries of inclined slots cut in its projecting sides forthepurpose ofguiding the several turns of yarn passing about'therotating feeding elementand about spindle ll. f This guidingmeans willbe and the yarn 5 passing about spindle I1 is also passed over the lowerend of this wire 24 so that upon certain conditions to be described, thearm and wire will be swung in an are as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3. Aweight in the form of a knurled thumb nut 25 is threaded upon screw 23and is maintained in place by tension spring 26. To vary the amount ofeffort required to swing this arm and wire in the arc illustrated theweight 25 may be adjusted closer or farther from the point about whichthe arm swings. As illustrated in Fig. 2, element l9 acts as a stop forthe wire 24 in one direction and keeps the wire and arm from swinging inthe wrong direction.

In actual practice one very satisfactory way to thread up the device isillustrated in Figs. 1 and 3, the yarn 5 being passed about the feedingelement, a turn around spindle ll, then two turns wherein the yarnpasses about the element, spindle l1 and wire 24, the spindle I! thusbeing contacted three times by the yarn for the purpose of driving it.Said yarn is now passed about the element, by the opposite side ofspindle I! and about the wire 24 and then back to the element. and fromthat to the needles of the knitting machine or whatever other disposalis to be made of the yarn being advanced. The yarn will thus befrictionally advanced by the driving element and at the two turnsillustrated at 21 and 28 will be retarded by the rotation of spindle l1adversely to the direction of travel of the yarn. This conditionprevails while wire 24 is in a position such as that illustrated in Fig.1, full lines. The driving effort imparted to, the yarn will thus be thedifference between that exerted by the said driving element and the dragcreated by the adverse movement of spindle II. This drag has been foundvery eifectivein eliminating any tendency of the yarn to overrun asabove mentioned. Now in the event additional resistance is encounteredon the supply side of said feeding device, there will be a temporarytightening of the yarn coils about elements 2, l1; and 24 thus swingingthe yarn and wire into a position somewhat as indicated in Fig. 3. Thismovement gives some relief to any temporary tightness of yarn on theneedle side of the device. In this position the stretches of yarn at 21and 28 upon which drag was exerted by the adverse movement of spindle I!will be swlmg free of said spindle and the full driving effort of therotated driving roll will be in effect.

For some types of yarn and certain pattern work which may be effected itmay be found necessary to pass the yarn in opposition to the movement ofspindle I! a greater number of times or perhaps, fewer turns, this allbeing discovered by the knitter and being peculiar to each differentcondition.

Another scheme for threading the mechanism is illustrated in Fig. 2, thepurpose of this particular threading being that of obtaining resultssimilar to those obtained in the modification, Figs. 6, 7, and 8. Bythis method we thread the yarn about the feeding element, one turn aboutthe free roll or spindle l1 and then several turns about the feedingelement, spindlel'i and wire 24, and then lead the yarn to the needles.All of the stretches of yarn which pass about spindle I1 and wire 24pass to the same side of the spindle so that there is a definitetendency to drive the spindle and none to retard its rotation. Theresult is that increases in tension cause the arm 23 to swing in an arcas indicated, the compensating action being sufiicient for feeding someyarns at a definite predetermined tension.

The stretches of yarn which pass spindle I! may not touch it except whenarm 23 and wire 24 are swung from the full line to the dotted lineposition illustrated in Fig. 2. The movement of the arm and wire willprovide for taking up any sudden tension which may be imposed upon theyarn at the delivery side of the device. There are many different waysof threading this feeding mechanism and it is not the purpose of thisdisclosure to go into a discussion of more than has been shown by way ofexample; the mechanism is to be claimed and obviously applicants areentitled to protection for the mechanism no matter what the uses are towhich it may be put.

The yarn combs 20 indicated in Figs. 4 and 5 have a series of slots 29within which the yarns are kept separate and within which they are heldby a wire 30 pivoting in a hinge 3|, this wire extending upwardly toeither side of the comb to close the slots thus preventing the escape ofany one of the stretches of yarn passing therethrough. At one side thewire has been bent as indicated at 32 and snaps over the top of the comband is thus secured in position. The dot and dash line showing of Fig.5, indicates the opened position of the wire in which position theelements are to be threaded.

Referring to Figs. 6, 7 and 8 we will describe a modified form of theinvention wherein a spindle 33 rotates within bearings in a sleeve 34and carries discs 35 and 36 maintaining a series of wires or'rods 31about which the yarn is wrapped all as described with respect to thecorresponding elements in Fig. 1, etc. A flange 38 carries a bracket 39attached thereto at the lower angular portion 40 of the flange by meansof screws 4|; this bracket also has attached about mid-way thereof acomb 42 similar to the comb 20 which functions to separate the turns ofyarn and guidethem to and from the driving element. A yarn 43 isthreaded through a guide 44 and makes several turns about the drivingelement to be frictionally advanced by contact with the wires 31, eachconvolution of this yarn being guided through comb 42 and also aboutspindle or roller 45.

This roller 45 rotates upon a pivot 46 projecting upwardly from the lug41 and within an opening 48 in an arm 49 at the upper end, Figs. '7 and8. This arm 49 pivots at 50 at one side of arrannular piece 5| whichattaches to bracket 39 by a downwardly projecting extension 52 and whichalso has another downwardly projecting portion 53 carrying a felt pad 54or similar block of material which serves as a brake. This brakenormally works on the upper surface of spindle or roller 45 which may bemade of metal or fiber or of any other suitable material.

The arm 49 is free to swing throughout an angle as illustrated in Figs.'7 and 8, the position in Fig. 7 indicating that in which said roller 45bears against pad 54 to be retarded thereby and in the position of Fig.8 said arm has been swung up to a position wherein it is stopped by lug55.

In operation the yarn 43 will be driven by frictional engagement withthe wire 31, the said spindle 33 being rotated at a speed faster thanthat required to advance the yarn. Roller 45 will be driven by the yarnwhich passes thereabout, but will be retarded by engagement with the pad54. Whenever any unusual occasion prevents easy drawing of the yarn fromthe supply,

. running will be possible since the retarding efiect this roller 45'will be moved away from the pad so that the full driving effect of therotating element will be imparted to the yarn. In actual practice theroller 45 bears with varying degrees of force against pad 54 so thatthis retarding effect of the pad on the roller and hence on the yarn,will automatically compensate for variations in effort required to drawthe yarn from the supply and will cause said yarn to be fed to theneedles under a constant tension. No overbecomes a maximum underconditions of slack and thus will prevent any excess yarn feeding.

Two forms of the invention have been illustrated in this case and it isobvious that modifications would occur to those skilled in the art andthat said modifications would still fall within the scope of theinvention and of the claims hereto appended.

We claim:

1. A yarn furnishing device for knitting machines having in combinationa positively rotated spindle about which a yarn is to be wrapped and bymeans of which said yarn is to be frictionally advanced, another spindleabout which said yarn is to be passed in opposed directions so that saidspindle will be driven by the yarn and will also tend to retard theadvance of the yarn.

2. A yarn furnishing device for knitting machines having in combinationa positively rotated spindle about which a yarn is to be wrapped and bymeans of which said yarn is to be frictionally advanced, another freelyrotatable spindle adjacent the first about which coils of the said yarnare passed in opposite directions, an arm movable in a planesubstantially at right angles to the axes of said spindle and meansprojecting from said arm about which the coils of yarn are also passed,said arm being so disposed that upon increase in tension on the yarn,some of the coils of yarn will be moved from engagement with the freelyrotatable spindle.

3. Yarn furnishing means having in combination a rotatable element aboutwhich a yarn is passed in several wrappings, a spindle adjacent saidelement about which the wrappings of yarn pass some on one side and someon the other so that the said spindle will be driven by some of thewrappings of yarn and will be retarded by others and means automaticallyoperated by the yarn itself for moving those retarding wrappings of yarnaway from said spindle as described.

4. In a knitting machine of the type described, a yarn furnishing deviceincluding a positively driven yarn furnishing spindle about whichseveral coils of the yarn are passed, a freely rotatable spindleadjacent and parallel to the first and means between the two for guidingthe several coils of yarn from one spindle to the other, an armswingable at right angles to the axes of the spindles and having a rodprojecting therefrom adjacent said freely rotatable spindle and, aboutwhich the coils of yarn are passed,

said arm and rod being so disposed that in one position the coils ofyarn fully afiect the second spindle to respectively drive and retardthe same, and in other positions to which it is movable under yarntension, will move those yarn coils which retard said spindle away fromthe spindle to nullify their effect thereon.

5. Mechanism as defined in claim 4 wherein said arm has an adjustableweight movable along its length for the purpose described.

6. A yarn furnishing device having in combination a positively drivenrotating element, a freely rotatable spindle adjacent thereto and amember about which yarn is to be passed adjacent to both the element andspindle and movable to and from the same, means for guiding yarn inseveral coils about the three elements and means for moving the saidmember in a direction to tighten said coils of yarn.

7. In a yarn furnishing device of the type described, a positivelyrotated feeding element, a freely rotatable spindle and a movable memberabout which several coils of yarn are to be wrapped for beingfrictionally advanced, means for guiding and separating the severalcoils of yarn passing about said element, spindle and member, saidmember depending from an arm so positioned that it swings in a directionto and from the element to loosen or to tighten the coils of yarnwrapped thereabout.

8. A yarn furnishing device having in combination a positively drivenyarn feeding element rotating at a speed in excess of that at which yarnadvanced by the element is to be fed, a freely rotatable spindleadjacent and substantially parallel to the axis of said element, an armwith a wire depending therefrom in such a position that coils of yarnwrapped about said element and spindle may also be wrapped about thewire, a weight on said arm for moving the arm and wire in a directionaway from the spindle and element but permitting said wire to be movedtowards the same in the event of a temporary increase in tension uponthe running yarn.

9. A yarn furnishing device having in combination a positively drivenfeeding element and a freely rotatable spindle adjacent thereto aboutboth of which coils of yarn are to be wrapped to be frictionallyadvanced, means for keeping the coils of yarn separated and other meansfunctioning upon increase of tension to diminish the size of the yarncoils passing about said element and spindle and vice versa.

10. A yarn feeding device having in combina- AUGUS'I'IN GAGNE.

